STOCKHOLM — Saudi national Omar Yaghi, along with scientists Susumu Kitagawa and Richard Robson, has been awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for the development of metal–organic frameworks, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences announced on Wednesday.

Born in Jordan to Palestinian parents, Yaghi was granted Saudi citizenship in 2021 following a royal approval to naturalize prominent specialists across various fields.

The move seeks to attract global talent, localize investment, and foster an advanced scientific and innovation-driven environment.

The Nobel Committee said the trio’s pioneering work on metal–organic frameworks — crystalline compounds with ultra-porous structures — has provided chemists with powerful tools to tackle global challenges, including clean energy storage and environmental sustainability.

“Through the development of metal–organic frameworks, the laureates have provided chemists with new opportunities for solving some of the challenges we face,” the award-giving body said in a statement.

The Nobel Prize in Chemistry, first awarded in 1901, carries a total reward of 11 million Swedish kronor ($1.2 million).

The 2025 award marks the third announcement of the year, following the Nobel Prizes in Medicine and Physics earlier this week.

Last year’s chemistry prize went to US scientists David Baker and John Jumper and Britain’s Demis Hassabis for breakthroughs in decoding and designing protein structures, advances that have transformed modern drug development.

The Nobel Prizes, founded in the will of Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel, recognize outstanding achievements in science, literature, and peace. Nobel, himself a chemist, used his fortune derived from the invention of dynamite to establish the awards more than a century ago. — SG